Student Spotlight – Dylan Meyer
In nearly 35 of teaching, I have had five students who were gifted enough to play golf professionally, and really two who could be successful at the highest level. One of them is Dylan Meyer. I knew in five minutes that he was going to be special. At the age of nine, he had the ability and instincts that surpassed most players.
We immediately set upon a course of practicing with the big picture in mind. Practice sessions were shotmaking discussions about the shots needed to play golf at the highest level. Curving the golf ball, trajectory control, short game maturity and lag putting all are priorities. To win a golf tournament, a player must develop an advantage over the field, something he does better than anyone else. Dylan’s forte is accuracy, especially with the driver.
Dylan was an All-American three times at the University of Illinois. He shot 64 in his first team practice and won his first tournament, one of seven collegiate victories. He also won the Western Amateur and made the final eight in the U.S. Amateur. He rose to #1 amateur in the world in the Golfweek ranking, and #2 in the USGA ranking. His first professional tournament was the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, where he had a top 15 finish. Now, he is working his way up the professional ranks and recently played in the PGA Tour event in Puerto Rico.
Michael Wolf – USGTF Teaching Professional
USGTF Master Teaching Professional Arlen Bento Jr. is an award-winning golf coach and golf professional, and has been a member of the USGTF and the WGTF for over 20 years. He has long been a WGTF Top 100 Teacher.
He resides in Jensen Beach, Florida, and operates his own indoor golf learning center in nearby Stuart, and his “Shoot Par Now” golf academy in Port St. Lucie, Florida, at the Saints Golf Course. He is the former head golf professional at the PGA Country Club at PGA Village in Port St. Lucie, and the former director of golf at Eagle Marsh Golf Club in Jensen Beach. Bento also owns interests in multiple businesses, and operates his own digital marketing company that helps other business owners succeed online. He has been married to his wife Julie for 25 years and has two sons, ages 24 and 22, two stepdaughters and four grandchildren.
Bento provides nearly 2,000 private lessons each year and has a very busy academy program with clinics, classes and golf schools at the Saints Golf Course. He is known in his area as a junior golf leader and coach. Bento credits his golf success to hard work, a quest for knowledge, perseverance, and the ability to learn how to use digital marketing to promote his businesses.
He can be reached via his websites:
Matt Jones burst onto the PGA Tour with much fanfare in 2008 after a great season in 2007 on what is now the Korn Ferry Tour. However, success at the top level came slowly for the Australian, and he had to go back to the fall qualifying tournament (Q-school) after his first season. He was able to keep his card and gradually improved, having a number of top-10 finishes in 2013. In 2014, he finally won his first tournament in Houston, defeating Matt Kuchar in a playoff.
Since that time, he’s been a steady if unspectacular player. He did win the Australian Open twice, in 2015 and 2019, showing the promise he has always held. Finally, this past March he won the Honda Classic for his second PGA Tour victory. Jones took control of the tournament with statistically one of the best ballstriking performances in the past 20 years. It remains to be seen if Jones will build upon this success. Now that he is 40 years old, the maturity and experience he’s gained should bode well for the next few years.
By: Anthony Benny
Greetings from Trinidad and Tobago to all my family and friends of the USGTF and WGTF. Today, I write about the game we all love and play. In Trinidad and Tobago, there was a time when I would ask where are all the golfers. The course was empty with very few players, but then COVID-19 happened. Now, I ask where are they all going, as there is no room on the tee box, the course is almost filled, and there is an increase of about 100% more players. That is good for the golf clubs’ membership and it’s also good for the teachers.
At present, I am teaching at two golf clubs, St. Andrews Golf Club and Point-A-Pierre Golf Club. Both programs are growing in numbers, the cost is reachable, and our more experienced junior players are improving rapidly, with the low handicap at about +2 in 2021.
Chris Richards Jr., our best junior male player, has won the last four events he played in competing against all comers. His last victory was the T&T Open Amateur, Championship Division, played at St. Andrews Golf Club this past March 18-21.
The future of golf certainly looks bright here in Trinidad and Tobago!
Echoing the dramatic growth of the USGTF in its early years, 10 candidates attended the certification course held in Las Vegas, Nevada, this past month. Under the leadership of president and CEO Brandon Lee, the USGTF is poised to begin a new era of growth, and that was reflected in the recent course.
“The present to our golf instructors is to experience in the joy of our student’s success,” said Bill Rice, who served as the lead examiner. “Let’s all share in the joy!” Rice’s abilities were on full display, as candidate Elliot Tabron noted.
“I had a wonderful experience,” said Taberon. “I learned more in five days than I’ve learned in six years teaching. Bill Rice is a gentleman and a scholar, as well as a fantastic instructor. All around, I give this experience six stars on a five-star rating scale.”
Rice will be hosting a Master Golf Teaching Professional® certification course June 14-16. There are new requirements to earn this certification. For more more information and to register, please click on
After a year’s hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the United States Golf Teachers Cup returns in full force for its 25th edition on Monday and Tuesday, October 18-19, at the Revere Golf Club in Las Vegas, Nevada. As in 2019, the tournament will feature a concurrent pro-am (akin to the AT&T National Pro-Am held every year on the PGA Tour at Pebble Beach), with USGTF members vying for individual honors along with participating in the pro-am during tournament play. An amateur partner is not required to enter the tournament.
The entry fee is $495 per player, both professionals and amateurs, and includes two rounds of tournament play, range balls before and after each round, closing banquet and awards ceremony, tournament prizes, and other amenities. Registration will be open soon, and information will be released shortly.
Golf saw a resurgence in 2020, and the numbers back that up. According to the National Golf Foundation (NGF), the total number of rounds played increased by 14% last year – a record one-year increase. As COVID-19 forced people to take inventory of their lives and with many indoor entertainment options shut down, golf became a beneficiary. Not only did beginners become fascinated with the game, but many people returned to the game after years-long absences.
To longtime USGTF teaching professional Matt Smith, there is no problem that cannot be overcome. Smith is one of the most accomplished teachers and players in USGTF history. He is well known for his prowess in these areas, but he has also drawn the admiration of everyone who knows him for overcoming stuttering.
” I have the passion that helps me to feel like every student is family. I have overcome a stuttering problem, and feel like I can motivate my students to overcome any issue,” said Smith. However, that does not define him. What does define him is the excellence he continually brings to any endeavor he attempts.
The owner of the Matt Smith Golf Academy in Pataskala, Ohio, Smith averages 55 lessons per week, has 150 kids ages 8-18 in his golf academy, and sends anywhere from three to 10 kids a year to play college golf. He is also a WGTF Top 100 Teacher and the first winner of the Harvey Penick Trophy for Excellence in Golf Teaching. He is a voracious reader and mentions he tries to get better as a player and a teacher every year.
“I feel at 45 years old I am a well-rounded player and teacher,” Smith remarked. “This allows me to work on every aspect of a golfer’s game. I do playing lessons and short game in season. I have all the latest technology to use indoors in the winter time. I am blessed that being a part of the USGTF helps me to achieve my teaching and playing goals every year.”
Smith has an Instagram account that can be accessed at 
He became the youngest winner on the PGA Tour in 82 years when he won the John Deere Classic in 2013, and quickly captured three major titles the next four years. Sustained stardom seemed certain for Jordan Spieth, but after winning The Open in 2017, he entered a slump that only now is he seeing signs that it may be behind him.